... the striking contrast of ways in which these old-line media companies are being proactive and reactive to interactive opportunities is raising serious questions about whether management is capable of repositioning their valuable assets in a digital media world.

The article recounts the by now familiar (and highly successful) move by Scripps into cable networks.

But it then turns to:

Neither Tribune nor Scripps, nor many of their newspaper brethren, have been able to make the necessary commanding leap into online classifieds in order to keep from losing that vein of gold to the unlikely new competitors like Craigslist.

It's shaping up as an interesting next few years for us in the "paper" biz. I think newspapers will make the transition, but will be bloodied and bruised getting there.

I certainly agree with writer Diane Mermigas that:

The big question looming over newspaper-TV combines is whether meaningful change can come quickly enough for them to leverage what remains of their strength and play to win.

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Image by jdlasica via FlickrPay attention to what Morgan Stanley's Mary Meeker says.That was a bit of advice that Bill Tallent, CEO of Mercury Intermedia, told the audience last Friday at "Smart Phones for Smart Journalists" at the John Seigenthaler...